Marine signal.



R. F. GORDERO.

MARINE SIGNAL. APPLICATION FILED MAB. 1, 1911. RENEWED r1112. 14, 1013.

1,073,798. Patented Sept. 23, 1913.

2 BHBETS-SHEET 1.

WITNESSES INVENTOR fiazxzon/jras-wkdera Z9 N Br ATTORNEYS mm 5 S 1t n MP m D m N D R m MARI APPLICATION TILED MAE. 7, 1,073,798.

INVENTOR .famorwres Cordem AITORNEYS WIT NESSES COLUIIBIAMMRAPM co WASNIN BAT/[6N FEBRES COBIDERO, OF RUBIO, VENEZUELA.

MARINE SIGNAL.

noravee.

Application filed March 7, 1911, Serial No. 612.894.

Specification of Letters Yatent.

Patented Sept. 23, 1913.

Renewed February 14, 1913. Serial No. 748,468.

To all who 2, it may concern:

Be it known that I, RAMoN Fnnnns Connnno, a citizen of the Republic of Venezuela, and a resident of Rubio, in the State of 'lachira, Venezuela, have invented a new and Improved Marine Signal, of which. the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to a new and improved signaling device, particularly adapted to be applied to boats.

An object of my invention is to provide an indicating means, whereby the stecrsman or navigator can tell in what direction another boat is approaching or is positioned, irrespective of the condition of the weather; that is, to provide a signaling or dangerindicating device which is actuated below the water line, and is, therefore, not influenced by foggy or stormy weather.

A further object of my invention is to provide a device to be used in marine signaling, which will emit light rays to actuate a similar receiving device on another boat or boats.

A further object of my invention is to provide a signaling mechanism for marine signals to collect the feeble light rays emitted from another boat or boats, and to concentrate these feeble rays into a small strong beam of light on to an indicating table or compass.

I attain the above outlined objects by positioning at different parts of the keel of the boat, a series of means for receiving light rays to be conveyed to the pilot house, where they will indicate to the navigator the direction from which the light rays were omitted.

lVith. the above and other objects in view, as will more fully hereinafter appear, the present invention consists in certain. novel details of construction and arrangement of partshereinafter fully descril'icd, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures, and in which" Figure 1 is a side elevation of a boat in outline, showing diagrammatically the outlines of the light-conveying tubes and re fleeting mirrors; Fig. 2 is a detailed perspcctive view of the annunciator; Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken through the keel of the boat and showing a preferred embodiment of the eye; Fig. 1 is an elevation of one of the eyes; and Fig. 5 is a detailed view showing the passage of the recciving ray, and a view part1 in perspective of the annunciator table and annunciator.

There is positioned along the keel ('5 of the boat, preferably in the fore and aft, 7 and 8, respectively, and in two or more places along each side of the keel, a series of lightn-eceiving and lightemitting devices 11. These devices are preferably of circular cross section, as shown in Fig. 411, and have a wrticallyand diametricallydisposed dividing partition 12, which partition has a lens-receiving rim 13 positioned upon the opposite outer edges of the partition 12, and this partition has an extension 14. bent into the section of a conoidal sphere with its depressed portion 15 having at the focal point 16 thereof, a luminous body, preferably an are light. Disposed between the lens-receiving rim 13 and the side of the extension 14, is a semi-spherical plate 17, the curved edge 18 of which is disposed in a semi-circular rim 1.) extending from the upper part of the partition 12 to its lower part.

Disposed in rear of the focal point 16, is a series of angularly-disposed mirrors 20, which n'iirrors tend to reflect all light from the luminous point through the glass plate 17 outward away from the boat and in such a direction that the light will not be reflected back into the light-receiving device on the opposite side of the partition 12. On the side of the partition 12, opposite the side in which the light-emitting device is installed, as hcreinbefore descril'ied, is positioned any form of light-receiving device, which will collect the scattered rays impinging on this device and will concentrate these rays into a small parallel beam of light. Preferably this is done by disposing a double convex lens 21 within a rim-receiving device similarto the rim-receiving devices 13 and 19 hereinbefore described, and placing within the focal center of the lens 21, a piano-concave lens 22 or any suitable form of lens which will form the convergent rays of light 23 into a parallel beam 2-1. The direction of this parallel beam of liglit may be changed as many times as desired, by means of plane mirrors 25, or other suitable reflectors, and carried forward through the light-carrying tubes 22 disposed throughout the body of the boat, in any suitable and convenient places. This beam of light is conveyed to the pilot-house to an annunciator 27 of transparent material, preferably ground glass, which annunciator is swung on trunnions 28 and 29 in the compass box 30 in the manner common with swinging compasses now in use, so that as the boat swings one way or the other, the annunciator will be maintained in a horizontal position. The compass box 30 comprises a table 31 rigidly mounted upon the floor of the pilot-house and is carried by means of any suitable supports 32. This annunciator has indicators permanently marked upon its face, designating the relative points of the boat; that is,one is marked Fore and another Aft, and in the disposition of light receiving and emitting devices shown in this disclosure, other points of the annunciator will be marked Aft port, Forward starboard, &c.

. table 31 below the annunciator 27. It will be seen that by this arrangement, as a boat similarly equipped approaches the boat above described, light will be collected by the particular light-receiving and emitting devices pointing in the direction of the approaching boat, and the light will first be concentrated and then conveyed through the tubes 24 to the corresponding location on the indicator, thereby notifying the steersman that there is a boat in that particular direction.

It is to be understood that not only may this device be arranged on boats or other moving bodies, but may also be positioned at wharves or ferry slips, to indicate to the steersman of the approaching boat, just what course or direction he should take. Further, a light arrangement of this description may be disposed in a channel to mark out the proper course for boats, and, further, difierent colored lights may be disposed in this channelway, as, for instance, a blue light to indicate the starboard, and a red light to indicate the port, so that a boat equipped with this device should always receive a red light on one side of the annunciator and a blue light on the other side, thereby maintaining the boat in the proper channel course.

Many changes could be made in the above construction and many apparently Widely different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof.

It is intended that all matters contained herein, in the above description-or shown in the accompanying drawings, shall be These indicating'marks are in axial alinement with the center of the light-conl veying tubes 24, which tubes terminate in the 1 interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense. It is also .to be understood that the language used in the following claims is merely intended to cover all the generic and specific features of the invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the invention, which, as a matter of langauge, might be said to fall therebetween, and that materials, sizes and relativities of parts are non-essential, except as called for in the claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. In a marine signal device for boats, an indicator having the different parts of the boat designated thereon, light-receiving mechanisms disposed about the boat and below the water line thereof, and means for directing light received through any one 'of said mechanisms to its proper designation on said indicator, to indicate the direction from which the light was received.

2. In a marine signal device, an indicator, a seres of light-receiving devices adapted to be disposed about a boat, and means for directing the light received through said devices separately to said indicator, whereby the particular device from which a light is received is noted on said indicator.

3. In a marine signal device, a series of light-receiving devices disposed about a boat, a ground glass annunciator positioned adjacent the steersman of the boat, and tubes leading from each of said light-receiving devices to aposition adjacent said annunciator, and means whereby light received from any direction on the boat, will be directed through a particular tube to a position on the annunciator, to indicate the direction from which said light was received.

A marine signal device, comprising a series of means for collecting light rays, means within each of said light-collecting means for centering said rays into parallel beams, means for changing the direction of said beams, a set of tubes, one tube for each of said light-collecting means, inclosing the corresponding beam whereby the parallel beams are directed to the pilot house of a boat, and means in the pilot house, disposed adjacent the ends of said tubes for receiving the beam of light from any of said tubes, said lastmentioned means comprising a freely-swinging ground glass plate adapted to indicate the light from each of said tubes at a designated point on said ground glass plate.

5. In a marine signal device, a series of light-receiving means disposed about a boat, tubes leading from said means to the pilot house of the boat, their innerends being parallel, and a translucent plate in the pilot house disposed in a plane substantially at right angles to the direction of light from said tubes, said plate having characters members, and means for directing light from thereon indicating the part of the boat from each of said members to its mrticnlar dcsigwhich the tubes below said characters exnation on the indicator.

tend, and means whereby light received from In t stimony whereof I have signed my 15 5 any direction on the boat will be transmitted name to this specification in the presence of through a particular tube, to indicate on said two subscribing witnesses.

plate, the (lireOtiOn fIOIn which said Was received. J J

6. A body having a series of light-receiv- Witnesses: 10 ing members disposed about the same, an in- W. S. QRTON,

dicator marked with the location of said PHIL1PD.ROLLIIAUS,

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. 0. 

